Information Technology Spending Per Industry: How The Numbers Compare

The digital universe now rules our most basic daily functions. Worldwide, the use of handheld digital devices has exploded to the point of obsession. The great disrupter has now become the one constant in our world, and machine learning is about to take the quantum leap into every industry that you can think of.

While the average age of the U.S. population is going to rise from 37.7 to 40 this year and the average citizen in this country is living a lot longer, it turns out the cost of technology will actually be the biggest drain on health care system budgets through the next few years. This is despite the fact that, by 2040, 37 of every 100 people will be over 65; populations that will most certainly require more resources from our health care providers.

The Times says that somewhere between one-third and two-thirds of health care spending is attributable to technology. While overall business technology spending this year include an appetite for more software and cloud models and a rising disdain for hardware, healthcare is the one sector that still utilizes a lot of on-premise equipment.

Manufacturing Sector Struggling to Adapt

PWC points out that the overall global demand for manufactured products is experiencing a slow growth phase, with foreign trade at an all-time low. Yet PWC analysts suggest this could be a time for factory-level technology innovations that could improve processes and fuel expansion. Creating digitally connected product lines that provide insight into production and improve operations are what create “remarkable opportunity” for the manufacturing sector. However, PWC points out the industry is risk averse and unwilling to increase technology spending. A July 2016 PWC report showed 30% of U.S. senior manufacturing executives said their companies were increasing technology spending in 2017. This is particularly startling when you consider that overall business trends show a virtual explosion of technology spending in almost every other sector.

Government Continues to Spend, Spend, Spend

According to Government Technology, a whole lot of your tax dollars are going to be allocated for tech expenditures in 2017. Check out these spending numbers, by government sector:

Education $23 billion

Environment and natural resources $7.4 billion

Health and human services $26.4 billion

Public safety and justice $7.6 billion

Public works $7.6 billion

Transportation $10.3 billion

The biggest concern of technology professionals in local, state, and federal government remains computer network security. Across all industry sectors, spending for technology and services to combat cyber terrorism is on the rise.

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